Cass City school board approves new student/staff relations policy

Published 11:48 am, Monday, April 25, 2016

CASS CITY  In an effort to prevent any future issues, the board of education here approved an updated student-staff relationship policy at its Monday meeting.

The updated Cass City policy defines immoral student-staff relationship behavior as conduct which offends the morals of the community and is a bad example to youth whose ideals a teacher is supposed to foster and elevate. The policy lists three examples of such behavior, including but not limited to verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature directed to or in view of students; sexual or romantic contact with students of any age, for a period of one year upon the departure of the student from school; providing minors with alcohol, tobacco or other illegal substances.

The policy states district employees and administrators have a responsibility to avoid any apparent or actual conflict between their professional responsibilities and personal relationships with students and any immoral behavior or causing the impression of immorality is strictly forbidden.

Disciplinary sanctions, up to and including termination of employment, will be imposed on staff who violate the standards of conduct, the policy states.

Superintendent Ron Wilson said the student-staff relationship policy has been a recent topic of discussion at superintendent meetings within the Tuscola Intermediate School District. Cass City had its own student-staff relationship policy issue after former Band Director Doug Burtch was charged with criminal sexual conduct in Tuscola and Sanilac counties. In April, he was acquitted of charges in Sanilac County. Burtch resigned from his position after the Sanilac trial after he faced non-renewal of his contract. Wilson previously said hed recommended non-renewal because of concerns regarding Burtch, including a relationship he had with a student soon after she graduated. Burtch faces an October trial in Tuscola County.

Also during Mondays meeting, the board adopted a budget policy revision which states budget review will become a routine agenda item at future school board meetings in order to keep a closer eye on expenditures to make sure the district doesnt over expend more than 1 percent of the budget. This update was prompted by a letter to the board from the Michigan Department of Education. The department stated it had recently reviewed its procedures related to its compliance with the federal Uniform Budgeting and Accounting Act, which establishes budgeting requirements for districts and oversight requirements for the state education department. The letter stated Section 20 of the act requires the state department to take actions for districts that are not in compliance with the act, including over expending the budget authorized by the board. The department stated it has set a threshold of 1 percent that the district can over expend its general fund budget. According to a preliminary 2005-06 audit received by the district, Cass City over expended its budget by 4 percent, which amounts to $500,000, Wilson said. He said this was because of unexpected increased costs in various areas of the budget, including electrical and gas. The board took action last week to reduce the 2006-07 budget by $200,000 by cutting the high school industrial arts teacher and not replacing the assistant high school/middle school principal position. The person in this position, Aaron Fernald, moved into the elementary principal position.